Isaiah Stanback has had quite the career.
The 40-year-old is currently working as an NFL analyst for the Dallas Cowboys, where he recently went off on CeeDee Lamb.
Stanback is a former NFL player who tried his hand at wrestling and is now an analyst and wellness expertGetty
Back in 2007, he was a budding quarterback-turned-wide receiver drafted by the Cowboys in the fourth round with the 103rd overall pick.
Stanback attended the University of Washington where he flitted between both positions. In 2005, he started all 11 games at QB, recording 2,136 yards — the 15th most in school history at the time.
His stellar play continued throughout his senior season where he ranked in numerous school career and single-season statistical categories.
At the same time, the multi-sport athlete also participated in track, qualifying for the indoor conference championships in the 60-meter dash.
To this day, he ranks among Washington’s all-time top-ten in the 100-meter dash (10.48, eighth) and 4×100-meter relay (40.07, seventh) outdoors, and the 60-meter dash (6.80, eighth) indoors.
Standing 6ft 3in, Stanback was a supreme physical specimen and a man in high demand.
He was drafted by the Baltimore Orioles in the 2006 MLB Draft despite not even playing baseball in college.
Stanback turned down the offer in order to chase his NFL dream, and was subsequently drafted by the Cowboys who planned to turn him into a wide receiver.
That they did, although he was hampered by injuries and later waived by Jerry Jones’ team.
The New England Patriots signed the versatile youngster in 2009, and in Week 10 he caught his first pass as a Patriot from none other than NFL legend Tom Brady.
Stanback played QB and WR for the Washington HuskiesGetty
Later in his career, Stanback won a Super Bowl with the GiantsInstagram@iamstanback
Stanback enjoyed a six-year career in the NFL, earning a Super Bowl championship with Eli Manning and the New York Giants — over his former team New England — in 2012.
Injuries ultimately cut short his career, forcing him to retire earlier than he would have liked.
Undeterred, Stanback attempted a radical career change, trying his hand at professional wrestling.
He was a part of the WWE Performance Center in Florida as he trained to become a wrestler.
Stanback made an appearance on Netflix’s Ultimate Beastmaster as a contestant for Team America, failing the second obstacle in the first round, which resulted in him placing last.
Stanback tried to make it as a WWE wrestler after the NFLYouTube@WWE
He trained at the WWE Performance Center in FloridaYouTube@wwe
Unfortunately he couldn’t quite make the jumpYouTube@wwe
Although wrestling didn’t quite work out for him, the former NFL man became a respected voice in sports media.
In August, the NFL Network announced it was bolstering its coverage ahead of the new season by adding four new analysts.
Stanback was one of them, as was Ron Rivera, Manti Te’o, and Nate Tice.
Stanback is a two-time Emmy Award-winning NFL Analyst for the Cowboys, recognized for his insightful commentary and deep knowledge of the game.
After America’s Team suffered a 28-25 home defeat to the Baltimore Ravens in Week 3 that dropped them to 1-2 for the season, Stanback went viral for his scathing assessment of Cowboys wide receiver CeeDee Lamb.
Lamb recently signed a four-year, $136 million extension, and could be seen visibly upset with Dallas QB Dak Prescott at one point in the game — something Stanback took issue with.
“You’re facing going 1-2, the last thing you need to be doing is having some explicative going on the sideline against your QB1, having terrible body language when everybody else is in the game fighting for yard after yard,” Stanback told The First Word, the Cowboys official postgame show.
“When you’re on the sideline, taking a knee, having bad facial expressions, and your No. 2, 3 and 4 receivers are out there getting first downs … you can’t do that.”
When he isn’t sounding off on the Cowboys, Stanback can be found giving back to his local community.
He serves on the boards of the Union Gospel Mission of Dallas and the Dallas Wings Foundation, where he actively supports initiatives that uplift and empower local communities.
He’s also the CEO and Founder of Steadfast Fitness and Performance, a premier personal training and performance facility based in Lewisville, Texas.
As a wellness expert, he’s reportedly committed to helping individuals achieve peak physical performance and health.
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